Fallout: East and West
by Virgil of New Genesis
Summary: The Lone Wanderer heads west to send a progress report to the Lost Hills Brotherhood of Steel. Meanwhile, a Courier for the Mojave Express is shot in the head over a simple casino chip. But what happens when the two of them meet?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: SURPRISE! I realize that some of you are curious as to why I pulled the previous version of Fallout: East and West that I wrote. Truth is, there just wasn't enough flavor to it. So, I've revised, and added a few new things to the story to make it a bit more interesting. **

**Enjoy and review.**

**Chapter 1: Sam**

August 1st, 2281

They say that death is but another great adventure. Sam found it funny, in all his years traveling across the Core Region, the Mojave Wasteland, and surrounding areas, he'd never realized the truth in that statement until now.

Sam woke up, his head groggy and his hands tied. To his far left, a man with a leather vest that had an emblem, what looked like the painted face of a man wearing a red samurai helmet, the symbol of the Great Khans, a local raider gang and drug dealers, was digging a hole. Five more men were in front of Sam. The only one who wasn't a Khan, a man in a checkered suit, lit a cigarette, his face barely visible in the light created by the lighter, as one of the Khans spoke.

"Look who finally woke up," he stated as the four Khans and checkered-suit looked straight at Sam. The fifth Khan finished digging his hole and got up.

"Let's kill him already, Benny," the Khan on the immediate right of checker suit, Benny, declared in exhilaration of the idea of death.

"That may be the way you Khans do things," Benny started after he exhaled smoke, "but I like to look a guy in the face before I kill him." He spoke in a fake, Pre-War Brooklyn accent. "I'm not a fink, dig?" He reached into his jacket and pulled out a platinum casino chip. "You've made your last delivery," Benny put the chip back and pulled out a golden, pearl-handled nine millimeter pistol.

"Why…" Sam barely managed to say before Benny continued.

"I know this may seem to you like a 14-carat run of bad luck, but truth is," Benny pointed the gun at Sam, "The game was rigged from the start." He pulled the trigger twice.

* * *

Sam opened his eyes once more to the sight of a ceiling fan hovering over his head.

"Good, you're awake." A voice declared as Sam quickly got up, only to be shot down by pain coursing through his body. "Easy there. You've been out cold a couple days." Sam finally got a look at the source of the voice. It was a man, likely in his mid-sixties, with white hair growing only on the sides, a grayish-white mustache covering his lip, and a frontier look that reminded Sam of pictures he saw of men from the nineteenth century. "Let's start with your name, can you tell me your name?"

"Sam, Sam Darkwater." Sam stated as he looked into the man's brown eyes, "Who are you, and where am I?"

"The name's Doc Mitchell, welcome to Goodsprings."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Sam**

August 8th, 2281

Almost ready to pass out, Sam sat down on the barstool after an exhausting day. Doc Mitchell asked him to take a bunch of tests after he woke up and suggested for him to talk to Sunny Smiles, a local hunter, about how to survive in the Wasteland. Sam figured he shouldn't be rude, even though he knew most of the things Sunny was talking about. He spent most of his time helping Sunny clear water holes of large geckos; they even saved a woman's life at the last water hole. After all that, Sam was about ready to pass out in a booth in a dark corner of the Prospector Saloon when he heard raised voices coming from the main part of the bar.

"You'd better give us Ringo, or I promise you, we're gonna burn this place to the grown," yelled a dark-skinned man wearing a blue jumpsuit and a black vest, the letters 'NCRCF' written on the back in yellow ink. Sam recognized the kind of man he was, it was the same type of person that Ace became. He never saw it, but Sam heard from sources that his old squad commander had become angry after the Battle of Hoover Dam, that, when they got a contract, his old squad commander killed all who were in his way, in an almost drunken rage.

"If you're not going to order a drink then get out," An older woman, likely Trudy, the owner of the Saloon, told the man as he headed toward the exit.

Sam, out of curiosity, got up and walked toward Trudy. He sat down at a bar stool and asked Trudy, "Who was that?"

"That was Joe Cobb, he's one of those escaped convicts down from the NCR Correctional Facility, they call themselves Powder Gangers," She began to lightly smack a radio on the other side of her as it started to fritz out, "Probably the dumbest thing the NCR ever did was to give those guys dynamite." She started to hit the radio even harder.

"You want me to fix that for you?" Sam asked, getting up, ready to head around the bar table. Trudy invited Sam as he walked over to the radio. Sam began to tinker around as he began asking questions, "So, do you know anything about the men who shot me?"

"Yeah, one of them broke the radio." Trudy began to clean, "They came from up north, said something about heading south, toward Primm, to take Highway 95 back north. Couldn't say I blame them. I hear the Long 15 is infested with deathclaws."

"Done," Sam declared as he set down the radio and turned it on to be greeted by Frank Sinatra singing _Blue Moon_.

"Thank you," Trudy began to dig into the pocket of her dress for caps when Sam intervened.

"Payment is not necessary; just tell me where Ringo is."

* * *

Sam had to admit surprise at what he was greeted with when he entered the gas station Ringo was holed up in. "I'll admit, I'm starting to get tired of people I barely know sticking a gun in my face." He held up his hands as he added, "I'm here to help you with your problem concerning the Powder Gangers."

Ringo lowered his pistol, "It's nice to know there's someone out there willing to do something."

"I'm not the only one," Sam started, "Before I came here, I talked to some of the other townspeople. They're all willing to help drive the Powder Gangers from the town."

Sam was about to continue to explain when Sunny appeared, "Time to look alive, Powder Gangers have arrived."

"How many?"

"Six, including Cobb."

"We'd better go out and meet him." Ringo stated, as he pulled his sidearm back out an walked out the door.

* * *

The three of them walked toward Joe Cobb, he looked tough and mean, ready for a fight and not afraid to use every weapon he had at his disposal. Sam walked up next to Cobb; the two were within arm's length of one another. He could smell the gunpowder on Cobb's clothes and skin.

"Leave these people, and Ringo, alone," Sam told Cobb as the two of them stared at each other in an attempt to make the other back down.

"Or what?" asked Cobb, his voice deepened slightly, showing that he wouldn't give in.

Sam looked over Cobb's shoulders; the five other Powder Gangers began to ready their weapons. He looked back at Cobb, he reached into his vest and pulled out a combat knife and began to thrust. Sam moved first, drawing his revolver, cocking back the hammer, and grasping Cobb's wrist, pulling it to the side, effectively disarming him. He fired his revolver at the closest Powder Ganger over Cobb's right shoulder, hitting him in the head and killing him instantly. He fired at a second Powder Ganger as Cobb recovered slightly and started to attack Sam again with a left hook. Sam slammed Cobb in the face with the butt of the revolver. He then pulled the trigger, killing a Powder Ganger to his right, and using the recoil to hit Cobb in the face once more, knocking him to the ground. Two more Powder Gangers began to ready their weapons; the one on the right loading a double-barreled shotgun, the man on the left lit a stick of dynamite. Sam shot the man on the right in the head as the second man threw the explosive. He shot the stick in mid air and it exploded in the Ganger's face, it knocked him back, but didn't kill him. With Cobb's knife in his left hand, Sam flipped it over and, holding the blade in his hand, threw the knife, hitting the man in the forehead.

He then turned toward Cobb and cocked the hammer of his revolver for the final bullet. Cobb was holding a .357 revolver in his hand, aimed at Sam.

The sound of a single gunshot echoed across all of Goodsprings.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: I just wanted to say that, in light of everything else, I felt that it would be best to add a few extra characters to the story to give it a bit more emotion and to give the character of the Lone Wanderer more depth.**

**Enjoy and review.**

**Chapter 3: Ally**

September 25th, 2281

_Revelations 21:6- I am alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely._

These words echoed in Ally's mind as she watched the man she loved give his life for the people of the Capital Wasteland. Alex, like Ally, wasn't born around the ruins of DC, nor was he obligated to give his life to allowing the people a chance at safe, clean water. But, he did anyway. Revelation 21:6, it was her dad's last words, the hint as to how to activate Project Purity.

Ally stood there as Alex, who was getting pounded with extreme amounts of radiation, entered the activation code, 216. A blast of light and energy knocked her back as she awoke from the nightmare that has been haunting her since.

She looked at the clock on her Pip-Boy. It's been exactly three years since her dad died trying to protect Project Purity from the hands of the Enclave, a group descendants of Pre-War government officials. She walked over to the mirror in my living quarters, her brown hair and brown eyes showed the experience that she gained since first emerging from Vault 101 in search for her dad. Her slender face still looked exactly as it had three years ago. She reached into the nightstand directly under the mirror and pulled out a picture of her dad and her from back when she was ten, a candle, and a lighter.

Lighting the candle, she propped the picture against the mirror and kept it up with the candle. She closed my eyes in a silent prayer, hoping that wherever her dad was, he would know that his and Ally's mother's dreams were realized. Afterwards, she got dressed and began walking out toward the Citadel Lab for what people were telling her was a special surprise. She always tended to chuckle on occasion at the size of the Citadel, and how much larger it was before the bombs were dropped two hundred and three years ago, back when it was referred to as the Pentagon. She reached the Lab, only to find the most unexpected thing.

* * *

"After much consideration and years of hard work, I, Sarah Lyons, Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel of the Capital Wasteland, grant you, Alison Cole, the rank of Sentinel," Sarah looked the same as she had when Ally first met her, same blonde hair, tied in a bun at the back, the same grey eyes, everything, "Good work, Ally," Sarah finished as she shook Ally's hand and the room erupted in applause.

"Now," Elder Lyons, who looked good, despite his deterioration health, came closer in his wheelchair, "On to more pressing issues," Even with his health being as bad as it was, Elder Lyons still commanded the same level of respect that he had when Ally first arrived at the Citadel, three years ago. Elder Lyons suffered from brain cancer, something that should've kept him in his room at that moment, yet he still came to honor Ally. He was that kind of a person, a fighter who would never give up. Ally was always amazed at his level of stubbornness, despite the fact that, since Ally was one of the only medical doctors in the Brotherhood, she kept telling him to rest and relax for the next couple of years, if he lived that long, "It's come to my attention that you have volunteered to lead the expedition to the Lost Hills, to let the West Coast chapter of the Brotherhood know of our progress."

As he said those words, Ally felt a twinge of guilt for asking to leave, "Yes, Elder," she stated softly with her head low. The Elder smiled, most likely because of the fact that he was no longer Elder and he kept reminding the Initiates, Knights, and Paladins to not address him as such, obviously to no avail. Ally brought her head back up as she continued, "I've already set up a team for the mission. It'll be Jack and I," Elder Lyons nodded in approval as they were all dismissed to leave.

* * *

"Are you sure you won't come?" Ally asked Fawkes, a large, seven foot six, yellow-skinned super mutant, as well as her best friend, as she finished packing.

"I'm sure. My place is here," he stated bluntly in his usual gruff voice, "You already have Jack coming along with you. Besides, I may still be able to find more like me and help them." Ever since Ally had met Fawkes, she knew he was different. Most other super mutants from the Capital Wasteland weren't all that smart, and, ever since they met up with another intelligent super mutant, named Uncle Leo, Fawkes has become more obsessed in finding others.

"Then good bye, my friend," Ally told him as they hugged and she walked out the door.

* * *

Out in the Citadel courtyard, the Vertibird, or Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) helicopter, was warming its engines, with Jack already in the back. Once Ally was got in, she heard Three Dog, a local radio personality, on Galaxy News Radio.

"_Well, kids, today I have a special tribute to the one person who made life in the Capital Wasteland a little more bearable. Hats off to you, Lone Wanderer, as we play a special song, just for you,"_Happy Trails by Roy Rodgers began to play as she flew the Vertibird up and away from the Citadel, and west toward the unknown. Ally found herself looking around at the Capital Wasteland, amazed at how much it changed in the years since she first came out of the vault. Ally began to shed tears as Rodgers issued the last line of his song, and the radio went silent.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Ally**

August 9th, 2281

Ally couldn't believe her luck. They were so close to California, yet so far away, blocked only by the forbidding passes of the Sierra Nevada.

"Looks like our best way to get to our destination would be to fix the Vertibird ourselves," Jack commented as Ally checked the engine to see if there was something lodged inside.

"It's… a bird?" Ally stated, confused by this new development, "Didn't birds die off hundreds of years ago?"

"I believed them to be gone as well," Jack took the bird from Ally, placing it gently in the palm of his right hand.

"I've never seen a crow before," Ally declared, noticing the shape of the bird and the color of its feathers. Suddenly, nearby bushes began to rustle. Ally bent down to pick her laser rifle up when three raiders emerged from the brush. Putting her right foot forward, Ally fired at the raider in the middle and he vaporized in mid air. As the second one came closer to Ally, swinging down with a golf club, Ally swigged her right arm over and elbowed him in the face, knocking him toward Jack. The third raider somehow got behind Ally and was ready to stab her in the back when Jack picked up the raider in front of him and threw him toward the one behind Ally. Ally instantly turned and shot the men, a pile of dust marked where they laid. A fourth man emerged from the bushes, carrying a hand saw, a hockey mask separating his appearance from his allies. Ally kicked him in the face after a failed attempt at hacking her into pieces, and aimed her rifle straight at his face, and fired.

* * *

"Excuse me, ma'am," Ally began politely as she sat down on a barstool in the Prospector Saloon. Ally always found it helpful to head straight to a bar when she needed information in a new town. "Is there a mechanic around here?"

"Not around here," Trudy in her late thirties told Ally as she turned around, wiping a whiskey glass clean. Ally hung her head and began to slide off the stool when Trudy continued, "But…" Ally turned back toward her, "There was a guy who came through a day or two ago who helped fix my radio. Maybe he'll do." Immediately, Trudy gave Ally a description of the mechanic, a fairly tall man with brown hair and hazel eyes, "He said his name was Sam. He's heading toward Primm, if you need to find him."

Just then, a man with brown hair, graying on the sides, and blue eyes walked toward Ally, "I remember that kid. I also remember him saying he was going after the leader of the Chairmen, Benny," The man declared as Ally just stared at him, "Your best bet at finding Sam in time is to get to Benny. Best way to do that is to head north, toward Vegas."

Ally, with a look of obvious confusion on her face, spoke, "Um… sure."

"That's suicide," The bartender interrupted, "The deathclaws will have both of you for breakfast."

The man had a grin on his face, the type that would make most people think he's crazy, yet, he stated with confidence, "I know a way past them," Then walked off, with Ally close behind.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Like I said before, I've added some new characters to the mix to make it more interesting. I've also given the Courier a bit of back story, making it so that he was involved in the First Battle of Hoover Dam.**

**Chapter 5: Sam**

August 12th, 2281

Sam groaned with regress as he began to wonder how he got himself in these kinds of situations. He was pinned down, five guys between him and his destination, fire being blasted in his face by a convict with an incinerator, and only two bullets left. Immediately, he sensed one of the convicts trying to surprise him behind the corner with a knife. Sam quickly grabbed the convict and threw him against the wall on his left side; one down, four to go. Sam closed his eyes, sensing where the other four were. He met with a stroke of luck when he sensed that three of them were in a group, with the one with the incinerator in the middle. He hastily barrel rolled out of cover and fired a single shot at the gas can on the back of the convict in the center. The incinerator burst into flames, killing two of the men as the third ran around, screaming as he was burned alive.

Sam opened his eyes. _Where's the fourth guy?_ He thought to himself as he was answered by the feeling of a gun to the back of his head.

"Say good night, little man," The convict declared in victory, his index finger ready to squeeze the trigger. A barely audible 'whish' came from Sam's left as an arrow flew straight at the convict's finger, causing him to jerk his gun to the right and fire, nearly missing Sam's right ear.

"Good night, little man," The archer to their left, next to invisible in the poor light of the room, stated as he pulled another arrow back and released it, causing it to hit the convict in the right knee as Sam turned around and punched him in the face with his left hand, "It's been a while, Sam." The archer slung his bow over his left shoulder as he advanced toward Sam.

"It's good to see you too, Hawk," Sam told the archer as he walked over and hugged the Native American man.

* * *

"It's hard to believe you're a deputy around here," Sam stated in surprise as he and Hawk walked out of the Bison Steve Hotel.

"It wasn't an easy choice," Hawk replied, scratching the back of his head.

"I hope it was the right one," The two of them started walking, with no particular destination chosen, "I just wanted to thank you for letting me know what was happening with the team after," He paused, "You know. And, I'm wondering, how's everyone else?"

"Their fine, I guess," Hawk began to count each of his old squad mates off, "Boom's gone back to Nellis."

"May the rest of the Mojave wish they never cross him," Sam and Hawk began to chuckle at that statement, they knew Boom was always a bit of a hothead and a lover of explosives; hence his name.

"Patch went to work with the Followers of the Apocalypse at the Old Mormon Fort; he's helping them out with the injured in Freeside. Last I heard of Surge, he went east, looking for Old World tech. Only thing I know of Ghost is that he's still in the Mojave. Probably doing what he normally does." Sam nodded as Hawk remembered something, "Oh, by the way, that reminds me, there's a little something I believe you'll find interesting in the Mojave Express outpost here in town. I talked to Nash and he says you can have it."

"Wait, what about Primm?"

"Well, I guess I'll have to become sheriff, but I'll need a deputy, if you know where I can find one."

"I know just the place," Sam rushed off toward the Vicki & Vance Casino.

"By the way," Hawk began, halting Sam in his tracks, "You'll want to continue down the Long 15, swing through Nipton and head to Novac to find Benny."

* * *

They screamed in agony as Sam walked down the main street of Nipton. Everywhere he looked, he saw the horrors caused by the Legion, the men hung on the crosses. Sam fell on both his knees as he remembered his friend, Ten. His yelling still haunted Sam after three years, his cries for help that went unanswered as all Sam could do was fight through the soldiers as his best friend was beaten and hung on a cross. The doors to the town hall opened as Sam looked up, trying to keep calm and keep his sobbing to a minimum. Frumentarii, scouts and messengers of Caesar's Legion, emerged as Sam's anger could no longer be contained. Instinctively, Sam's arms extended as the five Frumentarii's bones began to crunch. In a matter of seconds, they were dead, and Sam still did not feel satisfaction for what the Legion had done to Ten.


End file.
